Starting our 2019 Fall adventure

We've dropped my Mom off at my sister's place for a visit, so our starting point is Bonelli Bluffs RV Resort, overlooking Puddingstone Reservoir in San Dimas, CA. I have no pictures of the campgrounds but do have one of my mom. She'd probably be mad at me if she knew I was posting this!

It just so happens that San Dimas is about 10 miles west of Ontario, where Tom lived for part of his childhood (early grade school). So Tom couldn't resist taking a trip down memory lane. As we drove slowly past Tom's childhood home, the current home owner was sitting out front and eyeing us suspiciously. Tom wanted to take a picture, so we pulled over, and Tom (of course) went over and introduced himself to the home owner. He was very kind and friendly and seemed genuinely interested to hear about how the old man in front of him lived in his house 50+ years ago. After listening to Tom's story and asking a few questions, he related a slightly shorter version to his wife, who was inside. It's always fun to revisit childhood places, which usually look very different than in your memories.

So when it's time to start our trip, our first stop is Las Vegas, NV.  We're staying at the KOA at Sam's Town.
We're only here for one full day, and we decide to do something fun, so we go to see the Cirque du Soleil show, Beatles LOVE. It was bright, colorful and energetic. Really enjoyed the nostalgia of listening to authentic Beatles tunes. Oh, yeah, did I mention it was also VERY LOUD? Unbeknownst to Tom, I wore ear plugs for the whole show (and didn't miss anything)!

The next day, we're leaving to head into Utah.

Paradise Shores RV Camp - Bridgeport CA

We've passed through Bridgeport before on our way to other destinations. This time through, we've found Paradise Shores RV Camp on the Bridgeport Reservoir. When we get there, the power to Bridgeport has been knocked out by a lightening storm, so there no water or electric. We decide to stay anyway. After a few hours pass, the power comes back on.



The camp does not have a pool or spa, but they do have stand-up paddleboards and kayaks that are free to use.





We try out the SUPs ... with limited success. Wendy decides a better strategy is a KDP (Kneel Down Paddleboard).

Tom tries the standing thing, but ends up spending most of his time on his way into the water, under it, or climbing back out of it. You might be able to see from the picture that Tom is soaked from head to toe. Fortunately the water was warm. After a short time with the SUP's we decide kayaks might be a better "fit", so we spend the afternoon kayaking around the reservoir instead.


Tank also gets a chance to enjoy the water

There were also some afternoon thunderstorms with huge cumulus clouds...

... which led to some spectacular sunsets.

Just a few miles down the road is Travertine Hot Springs. When we get there, the pools closest to the parking lot are pretty crowded, so we wander around to see what the other pools look like. We do find a couple of other possibilities, but they are really too hot to stay in for any length of time. By the time we get back, most of the crowd is gone, so I enjoy the pools for awhile (even though I'm not dressed for it).

Lake Tahoe CA to Minden NV

Yes, we were just in Lake Tahoe a few weeks ago. The last stay was in Tahoe City. This time we're in the heart of South Lake Tahoe at the City of Lake Tahoe Campground. Admittedly, it's right off of Hwy 50, but it's really not that noisy. We're surrounded by trees, the sites are very spacious, and it's walking distance to the lake.

We will have to change sites. The first one is a pull-through and is a little farther from the road.











The second one is right next to the road, but it is HUGE!

Yup, ALL that space is our site.

Lunch at Riva Grill on the Lake

Leaving Tahoe, we also wanted to check out the city of Minden, NV.  The only place we are able to find is the Carson Valley Inn Casino. I don't have any pictures of the campground. Suffice it to say, the sites were paved but small and uneven. We didn't have much time here and didn't find much to do. There is the attraction of being in Nevada but still close to Tahoe. The city itself did have some very nice views of the mountains.

Graeagle CA

Oftentimes life forces us to travel areas we've been to before, but we do try to make our nightly stops in new places. As we leave Grass Valley, we're on a trip to pick-up my mom in Southern California. To stick to cooler areas and see new places, we're headed back up the Sierras.

Our first stop is Clio's Rivers Edge RV Park in Clio/Graeagle, about a 2 hour drive northeast of Grass Valley.  Our first impression of the area is wonderful. Clio has a population of less than 100 people; Graeagle has around 800. The area sits at just around 4,400 feet in altitude. The drive up is through rolling meadows and mountain valleys with little traffic, very relaxing.

Clio's Rivers Edge has a state park feel because of the trees and spaciousness, but it has full hook-ups and all the amenities.

   
We go to Ricochet Cafe, the only restaurant in town, for dinner. It's actually a food "truck" attached to the Blackbird Inn. They pass the food from the truck window into a window of the inn. We meet a couple there who tell us what a great area this is for mountain biking and hiking and that we should explore Mills Peak.

Another nice little find was the Frazer Falls trail. It's a short, paved 1.1 mile (round trip) trail with some really pretty scenery.

We also visit the Kentucky Mine Museum and take a tour to learn how a stamp mill crushed rock to extract gold.

On our way back we stop at Sardine Lake and wander around for awhile.

Another interesting place to visit is the Mills Peak Lookout, a manned fire lookout. The drive up to it is quite rough and not heavily trafficked, so I can understand why it's a popular mountain bike location.

We like the area, but can't get any additional nights at Clio's, so we move a few miles down the road to Little Bear RV Park in Blairsden. It's a very pretty setting also, but the sites are so tight, I'm still not sure how Tom got the RV into it.

Did I mention that our air conditioner went kaput?

Yes, here it is the beginning of summer and that whining, clanking sound that our heat pump was making has finally ended along with its functioning. The other side of that is it is a heat pump, which means it is also our air conditioner. Bad news...we can't get an appointment to get it fixed until July 9th, so we need to get out of the Sacramento Valley heat.

Because it's only a few days, we head back to Fort Bragg to Pomo's. It's the week before the 4th of July weekend, so we're only able to get a couple of days in a water and electric site, which is not quite as private as their full hook-up sites.

The area behind us is shared with several other RVs. One of them had a dog who was off leash and had the audacity to walk behind OUR RV. Tank, of course, took exception to that and reacted, breaking through the plastic clasp of his collar in the process.

Tank at his favorite venue (the Subaru) modeling his latest accessory.

So here's Tank looking chic in his brand new green collar, no more cheapo plastic on this one. (We had a choice of Christmas colors and decided green was the way to go.)

We took one night to head to the harbor for dinner. Looking for a place with a water view, we ended up at Silver's at the Wharf. Tom's sister says they have the best fish and chips in Fort Bragg.








We didn't know this was the restaurant she was talking about at the time,

so, of course, I order the fish tacos and Tom gets the pan seared fish with pineapple champagne cream sauce.

We have reservations at Westport Beach RV and Campground. According to Google Maps, it's right on the beach, so we're excited. Well, you gotta be wary of Google Maps. We were using it to navigate to the rv park, and it took us right past the entrance to the point closest to the park, which has no driveway and is blocked by trees and shrubs. So now, we've passed the entrance and are headed north on Hwy 1 looking for a place wide enough to pull a U-turn in a 33' RV towing a car...

That's us behind the tree that's behind the fence.

It's the 2nd of July. The 4th is in two days, and, accordingly, the campground is crowded with family groups getting ready for the celebration. Our site is a little tight; we're actually right up against a hill with no ocean view. Luckily, the beach is only a short walk away...







...and Tank is pretty excited about being at the beach!

It's a beautiful evening and sunset.













The next day we have a picnic on the beach. This table is one of the campsites on the beach, and tomorrow, the beach will be filled with tents.




















We'll be moving on from here on the 5th, so we will miss the 4th of July weekend crush. We find a place to stay in a mobile home park in town. Found out that on the 5th of July Fort Bragg hosts the world's largest salmon barbecue. Gotta admit, salmon is not my favorite fish, so the incentive to go to the gathering just isn't there. Just thought I'd throw this tidbit in here for any salmon fans who might want to attend in future years.

Now, it's time to head back towards Newcastle where we will get our air conditioning repaired. As it turns out, the air conditioner/heat pump could not be repaired and had to be replaced, thereby extending our stay in the area. We attend the Nevada City farmers' market

where we find a wine shop to do a tasting and listen to music.

All of this is only worth noting because Tom has forgotten his reading glasses and the kind hostess loans him a pair of hers!

Quite striking. Should he keep the look?